Situated about 25km north of Pilgrim's Rest in Mpumalanga. Stretching for 25km, featuring
towering cliffs, terrifying rapids, and steamy tracks of subtropical jungle, the world's
largest green canyon offer views to take your breath away. The Cradle of Humankind
Rich in fossils, riddled with
caves, it's one of the world's most significant halfway stations on the road to our evo-
lution as a species. The near-perfect skull of Mrs Ples, the area's most famous pre-hu-
man relic, is now believed to be the skull of Mr Ples. These sites have produced abun-
dant scientific information on the evolution of the human being over the past 3.5 mil-
lion years, his way of life, and the animals with which he lived and on which he fed.
The landscape also preserves many features of that prehistoric period.
The Cradle of Humankind is a World Heritage Site which was chosen for the rich di-
versity of fossils found in the area. Fossils in the area have provided us with more
clues to our earliest human ancestors The site covers an area of 47 000 hectares be-
tween Hekpoort, Broederstroom and Lanseria Most of the site is in Gauteng with bits
that extend into the North West Province (Sterkfontein Caves) There are currently
over 200 caves and 13 fossil sites.
The site is being upgraded to accommodate disabled tourists and international groups and
school learners Scientists have discovered that Australopithecus africanus was present in Cradle
from about 4-2 million years ago These hominids (upright walking “apes”), were human ancestors
Homo ergaster, present around one million years ago is even
more likely to be a direct ancestor than Australopithecus having a very close resem-
blance to modern man (Homo sapiens).
There are a wide range of activities offered, the best known being tours of the caves
and field trips to fossil excavation sites The area was declared a WHS because it con-
tains a vast treasure chest of fossilised remains of past life forms, particularly of ho-
minids Due to its new status, the whole area including the caves and the fossils sites are protected